However, fugitive GM oilseed rape (Canola) is growing along the railway system and the river port of Basel.

The contamination was confirmed in a recently published study which found the presence of GMcanola in railway areas in four separate and distinct areas and in the river port area of the city of Basel.

Researchers speculate that contaminated seeds were spilled from freight trains or during the transfer of goods from cargo ship to trains, resulting in the growth of a fugitive canola population which is environmentally contaminating the Swiss landscape.

More and more countries are documenting the pervasive spread of GM crop transgeniccontamination. The European union has specifically implemented the Cartagena Protocol to address any incidents of unauthorized GM release and trans-boundary contamination; however, the policy so far has been ineffective.